BLOOD RUSHED IN JUNE'S EARS as they walked through the crowd. Her heart was beating so hard she could feel it thrumming throughout her entire body. The whispers in her head were going into a frenzy, murmuring about Percy.

The demigods parted for them as Annabeth led them through the forum. Piper was on her right, clutching the blonde's hand protectively. Jason was on her left, posture straight and confident. He must've looked exactly like the powerful praetor they used to know, because the Romans whispered his name, staring at him in awe.

June and Leo walked a bit behind them. Leo was fiddling with his toolbelt, and June kept peeking out from behind Piper, trying to catch a glimpse of Percy. She barely noticed their surroundings, or the people around them. It was like her vision was tunneling. Her voices were counting down quietly in the back of her mind. She ignored them.

Some part of June's mind registered Tyson at the far end of the crowd, waving at them; the gilded Roman columns; the gleaming fountains; the mosaics; the smell of food in the air. But she wasn't very hungry after eating the sandwiches Jason had made. 

Her eyes landed on the beautiful girl approaching them. Her hair, dark and glossy, was braided into a wreath around her head. Laurel leaves were woven into it. She was clad in full battle armor and a royal purple cape.

Her eyes, black as coal, were trained on Annabeth alone. Even without Jason's description of her, June would've immediately known that she was the leader. She had to be Reyna, Jason's friend and fellow praetor. Who else would be adorned with so many medals and accolades? She walked with such confidence that most of the demigods in her vicinity were too afraid to even meet her gaze.

Annabeth wasn't, of course. The two girls gazed at each other for a long moment.

"Um," Leo whispered to June from the corner of his mouth. "Is there supposed to be this much tension right now? Because it is stressing me out."

June saw Piper's hand (the one that wasn't holding Annabeth's) flex. She hadn't left Annabeth's side, and was now glancing back and forth between Reyna and Annabeth's staring match with a strange look on her face.

Jason, thankfully, cleared his throat. Reyna shifted her attention to him. Her eyes brightened. 

"Jason Grace, my best friend," she announced. "We welcome you home with open arms. And your friends—"

"Percy," Annabeth inhaled sharply, stepping forward. Before she could go any further, Piper placed a warning hand on her arm. June's anxiety spiked. Annabeth had been surprising her with random judo-flips for the past two weeks, and she really hoped the daughter of Athena would know better than to attack him in the middle of New Rome.

"Not a good idea, Beth," June muttered, before realizing what she had said. "Wait, did you just say Perc— OOMPH!"

A figure had come barreling at her, knocking aside Leo and Piper and tackling her into a fierce hug. Strong arms circled her waist, and familiar black locks of hair tickled her cheek. 

"June Bug," he breathed, his voice rough. She would've recognized it anywhere.

"Percy!"

Just then, the voices that were counting down reached an earth-shattering zero; he pulled back, and his seafoam eyes stared into her dove-grey ones for the first time in almost a year. His hands lifted slowly, almost tenderly, to cup her face, as if he was in disbelief that she was actually there.

"So many months—" His voice cut off, strangled. He swiped the pad of his thumb across her cheekbone. Her eyes fluttered shut at the familiarity.

"Gods, I missed you," she murmured, leaning forward to press her forehead against his.

They stayed like that for a moment, swaying slightly on their feet; unaware of the stunned crowd of Romans staring at them, unaware of Annabeth smiling softly at the sight, unaware of the blond boy who stood frozen as if someone had just shot him straight through the heart.

Annabeth cleared her throat. When the pair turned towards her, they were met with raised eyebrows and grey eyes sparkling mischievously. "Can I have a moment to greet Perce too? Or do you guys want more time to—"

June and Percy spluttered, stepping away from each other, both bright red in the face. As Annabeth stepped toward Percy to pull him in for a hug, June backed away and bumped into Leo.

He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Quite an intimate reunion you had there, June Bug."

Her cheeks turned even redder. "Don't call me that."

"Your boyfriend owes me an apology, by the way," Leo wrinkled his nose delicately. "He practically threw me out of the way to get to you."

June ignored him, eyes scanning over the rest of the demigods now that she'd been reunited with Percy. Some were looking at her curiously. Others gave them dirty looks, tense and suspicious. She couldn't blame them.

"It's good to be back," Jason was saying. Piper was leaning against Jason, eyes narrowed at Reyna. The latter pretended not to notice. Her eyes were trained on the blonde girl walking towards them.

Annabeth's eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled at the other girl. "I'm Annabeth."

"The daughter of Aphrodite?" Reyna asked softly.

Annabeth turned red. Before she could say anything, Piper snapped, "I'm the daughter of Aphrodite. Annabeth's the daughter of Athena. Is it that tough to notice?"

"Alrighty, time to intervene," June mumbled to herself as she pushed forwards, smiling brightly and stepping in between Piper and Reyna.

"I'm June, daughter of Demeter. It's nice to finally meet you, Reyna. Jason's told me all about you!" She gave Reyna her best let's all be friends please look, widening her soft grey eyes and hopefully extending her hand out to her.

Reyna shook it, glancing at Jason from the corner of her eyes. "Has he now? What else has he said?"

"Oh, he talked about growing up here, in New Rome, and the different gardens he thinks I'd like, and what it'd have been like if I'd been a Centurion with you guys—" She babbled, still smiling, and hoped she didn't look crazy. Or like an idiot.

As June continued chattering, Reyna raised her eyebrow at Jason. He flushed, looking away.

"It seems like we have lots to talk about," Reyna interrupted June kindly. She then called out, "Centurions!"

Two demigods appeared at her side, a boy and a girl. The boy was cute in an awkward sort of way— he looked like he was just hitting his growth spurt, burly but with some remnants of his baby fat, with a black buzz cut and warm eyes. The girl beside him looked his age, with a cavalry helmet tucked under her arm. Her eyes were large and dark, her curly hair in box braids. They both wore Camp Jupiter t-shirts and jeans, although the girl had a white cardigan tied around her waist. She was staring at Leo as if she had seen a ghost.

Percy made his way to them, throwing an arm around each of their shoulders. June smiled. Of course the guy had managed to forge strong friendships, even without all his memories. Percy was one of the most magnetic people she knew.

A gangly blond boy elbowed his way forward. He interrupted Reyna as she was giving orders to her officers. "You're letting these intruders into our city? The security risks—"

Reyna's expression hardened. "We're eating out here, Octavian. In the forum."

Octavian rolled his eyes. "Oh, that's so much better."

A lot of attitude coming from a guy with three teddy bears hanging from his jeans, one of June's voices mused. She couldn't help but snicker in agreement.

"What're you laughing at?" Octavian snapped. He stepped towards June like he was about to attack her.

At that, Percy and Jason surged forward protectively at the same time. They hadn't planned to, of course, but together they must've looked pretty threatening, because Octavian paled even more (how was that possible?) and backed off. 

"Never mind..." He mumbled.

June Callahan protection squad, her voices said. Nice.

Her cheeks flushed, a pleasant warmth spreading across her body. She bit back a smile as the boys glanced at each other quizzically before stepping away.

Meanwhile, Reyna was berating Octavian. "They are our guests. We'll welcome them and we'll talk to them. You're the augur, it's your duty to burn an offering and thank our gods for bringing Jason back to us."

Percy's lips tugged up in a crooked smile. "Great idea. Go burn your teddy bears, Octavian."

June muffled her laughter, and even Reyna looked like she was suppressing a smile. "These are your orders, Octavian. Go."

Octavian glared at Percy and June. Then he gave Piper, Leo and Annabeth suspicious once-overs and traipsed off.

Jason appeared at June's side. He gave her a gentle nudge. "Don't worry about him. Most Romans are good people."

"Like Hazel and Frank here!" Percy added. The former gave them a little wave.

June's eyes landed on Annabeth and Piper. The two girls were frowning at each other. Undoubtedly, they were still feeling the chill they had gotten earlier. June's stomach lurched with worry, but when her voices whispered, relax, relax, relax, her tense muscles uncoiled themselves.

Annabeth shivered. "We'll be fine."

Reyna's eyes had been trained on the daughter of Athena the whole time. "Excellent."

The praetor turned to Jason, and June unconsciously smiled at how happy she looked to be reunited with her best friend.

"Let's talk," Reyna's eyes flicked to June, and then to Annabeth. "And then we can have a proper reunion."

rory speaks !

reynabeth has always made so

much sense to me

anw this chapter is short but oh well

[ 01/03/24 ]